Lessons LearnedTerrific insight and lessons learned from Jamey Stegmaier of Stonemaier Games and his experience at Gen Con 2016. “A considerable number of people made our area a home base of sorts. They hung out there when they had nothing else to do. They’d stop by just to say hi. They were there for every game night. There are many similar pockets like this at Gen Con–ours is just one of them. But I’m really glad we were able to provide that experience, especially for my fellow introverts.”Source: http://stonemaiergames.com/top-10-highlights-and-lessons-learned-from-gen-con-2016/

Zombie PartyGamers in the Philippines celebrated the release of Dead of Winter: The Long Night at board games cafe Dyce N Dyne. Demos of the game went from 7pm to 5am and some participants dressed as characters such as Mike Cho and Forest Plum.Source: http://www.plaidhatgames.com/news/733

West End AdventuresAsmodee’s Jack the Ripper & West End arrives in the fourth quarter of this year. It is an expansion to the Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective game, but can also be a standalone game for new players. “In this new title, you and your fellow detectives must work together to uncover clues, follow leads, and gather evidence in order to solve a variety of crimes from Regent’s Park to London Bridge.”Source: http://drafts.asmodee.us/en/news/2016/8/16/jack-the-ripper-is-on-the-loose/

Gifts from the EmperorAccording to ICv2.com, Renegade Game Studios and Foxtrot Games will release the first expansion to Lanterns: The Harvest Festival this January. In Lanterns: The Emperor’s Gifts, players will have “the option of building pavilions on placed tiles. When a player makes a color match on a pavilion, they earn a gift from the Emperor, a new currency which can be redeemed for new actions outlined in the Emperor cards.”Source: http://icv2.com/articles/news/view/35293/make-harvest-festival-even-better

Escaping 75 YearsAccording to ACD Distribution, Escape From Colditz: 75th Anniversary Edition will hit the streets on October 18th. “Designed by Pat Reid, a British officer who escaped from the Colditz prisoner-of-war camp during World War II, and Brian Degas, writer of the iconic TV series based on Pat’s escape, it is often named as one of the greatest board games in British history. This edition, published to coincide with the 75th anniversary of Pat Reid’s escape, will feature completely new art-work painted by fan-favorite historical artist, Peter Dennis.”Source: http://acddistribution.blogspot.com/2016/08/new-from-osprey-games-colditz.html

Sorcery
As a child, I loved the Sorcery gamebook series and for years afterward, I thought that the game’s creator was the same guy behind the Munchkin empire, only to learn that there was another game designer named Steve Jackson. Oops. The Sorcery books have been developed into apps for iOS and Android and Pocket Tactics reports the fourth in the series will be ready to go on September 15th.Source: http://www.pockettactics.com/news/steve-jacksons-sorcery-4-coming-september-15th/